21 Books with Psychedelic Covers

by Jessica Doyle

Picking up a book in the 1960s and 70s was a real groovy trip, and that was before cracking it open. Harlan Ellison and Philip K. Dick were at the height of their game, and far out science fiction was as popular as ever. Imaginative stories set in fantastical universes opened the door to creative book design, resulting in mind-bending covers depicting beautiful supernatural women and optical illusions bursting with every color in the spectrum.

While most of our selection is indeed vintage sci-fi, a gallery of psychedelic book covers isn't complete without the quintessential tale of the decade that gave birth to The Yellow Submarine and the Summer of Love. The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe chronicles Ken Kesey's iconic drug-fueled bus trip across America in the 1960s. The Milton Glase cover depicts Kesey's band of Merry Pranksters - the ragtag crew that adopted the author as their pyschedelic leader.

Magazines and paperbacks weren't built to last, and as a result many of these editions are hard to find today. Take a trip back in time with these psychedelic book covers, and tell us about your favorites in the comment section below.